Book Synopsis
The author's grandparents, Will and Agnes Clawson, bought a chicken ranch in Old Washoe City in 1929, and lived there until Will died in 1943. The house had been built in 1864 or 1865 to house the minister of the Methodist Church, located near the church. This account traces the extensive preservation and remodeling work done by Will and sons Marion and Bill Clawson during the years their parents lived there. The text accompanying the many photographs is based extensively on journals and books, and transcriptions of interviews, which are directly quoted rather that summarized. Many of the photographs are family images because the story of the ranch is a family story. The house remains in Old Washoe City and must be one of the oldest homes that continues to exist there. Remarkably, it survived the fire that blew through Old Washoe City in 2012, reputedly due to the heavy stucco that had been applied to the exterior by the Clawsons.